SING TO THE LORD A NEW SONG
BACH, PURCELL & HANDEL MASTERPIECES
Monteverdi Choir
English Baroque Soloists
Jonathan Sells – conductor
12 November 2025, 7.00pm
The Great Hall – Barts North Wing
SING TO THE LORD A NEW SONG
PURCELL – Hear My Prayer, O Lord, Z. 15
BACH – Der Geist hilft unser Schwachheit auf, BWV 226
BACH – Singet dem Herrn ein neues Lied, BWV 225
HANDEL – Dixit Dominus, HWV 232
Monteverdi Choir
English Baroque Soloists
Jonathan Sells – conductor
Zoë Brookshaw – soprano
Chloë Morgan – soprano
Reginald Mobley – alto
Hugo Hymas – tenor
Florian Störtz – bass
Mon 28 July 2025, Snape Maltings Concert Hall, Suffolk
Mon 4 August 2025, Usher Hall, Edinburgh
Fri 8 August 2025, STAGE+ digital stream premiere
Thu 4 September 2025, Old Royal Naval College, Greenwich
Weds 12 November 2025, Barts North Wing, London
from the MCO Team
The Monteverdi Choir & Orchestras’ mission is to bring fresh perspectives, immediacy and drama to historically-informed performance. A crucial aspect of a truly compelling performance is the venue itself: stunning heritage locations bring music of the past to life in a completely new way. And so we are delighted to perform tonight in celebration of the renovation and re-opening of the magnificent North Wing at St Bartholomew’s Hospital, with a programme that reflects the historical context of this spectacular setting.
When the North Wing was completed in 1734, J.S. Bach was at the peak of his powers in Leipzig. The two miniature masterpieces we perform tonight come from around this time: Der Geist hilft (1729) and Singet dem Herrn (1727), with its fitting spirit of renewal.
The greatest composer in England at the time was George Frideric Handel. He was a friend of William Hogarth, whose paintings of The Good Samaritan and The Pool of Bethesda adorn the grand staircase to the hall. Handel’s Dixit Dominus, which ends tonight’s concert, is no less ambitious: a musical tour-de-force full of virtuosic vocal and instrumental writing.
A generation earlier, Henry Purcell was the leading light of English music. He had close connections to this area of London, and in particular to the Charterhouse – just the other side of Smithfield Market. His eight-part anthem, Hear My Prayer, O Lord, composed for the choir of Westminster Abbey, opens our concert.
These works are illuminated anew by “the world-leading period ensemble” (Artsdesk) – the English Baroque Soloists and the Monteverdi Choir, led by Choir Director Jonathan Sells.
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PROGRAMME NOTES
Richard Wigmore
Dr Andrew Frampton
HENRY PURCELL (1659–1695):
Hear My Prayer, O Lord
Even in his brief, hectic lifetime, Henry Purcell was acknowledged as the greatest living English composer. None of his contemporaries matched his melodic genius, his versatility, or his inspired eclecticism that took in elements of the latest French and Italian styles without sacrificing a quintessential Englishness.
In 1679, aged twenty, Purcell landed his first major post when he succeeded John Blow as organist of Westminster Abbey. Over the following years he composed a raft of anthems for the Abbey and the Chapel Royal, including the eight-voice ‘Hear My Prayer, O Lord’. Setting words from Psalm 102, this was conceived as part of a larger piece that was never completed. Filled with painful dissonances and typically Purcellian ‘false relations’, the anthem builds up inexorably from the first alto, culminating in a wrenching discord on the final ‘come unto thee’.
Portrait of Henry Purcell, engraved by Robert White after John Closterman
J. S. BACH (1685–1750):
Der Geist hilft unser Schwachheit auf, BWV 226
Most of Johann Sebastian Bach’s seven surviving motets were associated with burial or memorial services, but some were also performed on other occasions, including New Year’s Day and Reformation Day. As Mozart discovered when he visited Leipzig in 1789, they were Bach’s only choral works to remain in the Lutheran repertoire long after his death.
Composed for eight-part double choir, ‘Der Geist hilft unser Schwachheit auf’ was performed in October 1729 at the funeral of Johann Heinrich Ernesti, Rector of the Thomasschule and godfather to two of Bach’s children. It falls into four sections. In the bouncy opening section, like a celestial passepied, the two choirs answer
each other and overlap in ever unpredictable ways. With a change from triple to duple metre, the second section (‘Sondern der Geist selbst vertritt uns’) is a free fugue on a catchy syncopated subject.
The two choirs then meld into a four-part chorus for the third section, a dignified stile antico fugue built on two distinct subjects: the first moving upwards from the basses, the second introduced by the tenors at ‘Denn er vertritt’. The final chorale is a strong four-part harmonisation of a stanza from Luther’s hymn ‘Komm, heiliger Geist’.
Portrait of JS Bach by Leipzig painter Elias Gottlob Haussmann Bach’s manuscript of Der Geist hilft unser Schwachheit auf BWV 226
J. S. BACH:
Singet dem Herrn ein neues Lied, BWV 225
Given the extrovert tone of most of this motet, it was long assumed that it was composed for a Leipzig New Year’s celebration, or perhaps a royal birthday. But the German scholar Meinhof Brüser has recently assembled evidence that ‘Singet dem Herrn ein neues Lie’ was probably written for the boys of St Thomas’s choir following the death of the first young singer engaged by Bach for the choir.
Scored for eight-part double choir, the motet sets verses from Psalms 149 and (in the final section) 150. The first section is a dazzling choral tapestry in which Bach imagines the two choirs as bells and/or trumpets celebrating God’s glory to the ends of the earth. Typically, Bach demands from feats of virtuosity from his choral singers that other composers reserved for instruments. After this eruption of cosmic energy, the prayerful central section provides much-needed repose.
The second choir sings a four-part harmonisation of traditional chorale melody, in alternation with a lyrical, freely imitative ‘aria’ (Bach’s term) for the first choir. Jubilation returns as the two choirs vie with each other to ‘praise the Lord for his mighty acts’, then come together for the dancing fugal ‘Alleluja’.
GEORGE FRIDERIC HANDEL
(1685–1759): Dixit Dominus
In the eighteenth century, Italy was the magnet for any northern musician bent on a career in opera. Never short of self-confidence, in the autumn of 1706 the twenty-one-year-old Handel duly set out from Hamburg for ‘the land where lemon trees bloom’. Arriving in Rome in the winter or early spring of 1707, he quickly acquired influential patrons. The first major work he composed there was the setting of Psalm 109 (110 in the Authorised Version), Dixit Dominus, signed ‘G.F. Hendel/1707/ li…d’aprile./Roma’.
We don’t know what prompted the Saxon to produce this music for the Roman Catholic liturgy, or even where it was first performed. One possibility is that Dixit Dominus was sung in the Vespers feasts of Our Lady of Mount
Miniature portrait of George Frideric Handel as a young man by Christoph Platzer
Carmel celebrated in the church of Santa Maria di Monte Santo in July 1707.
Italy liberated Handel, as it liberated so many northerners. In Rome his music, grounded in the Teutonic contrapuntal tradition, acquired a new boldness, exuberance and melodic allure; and none of Handel’s works is bolder or more exuberant than Dixit Dominus, in effect a sumptuous concerto grosso for five-part choir, five vocal soloists and strings. From the stupendous opening chorus, incorporating a plainsong cantus firmus, to the exhilarating (and vocally taxing!) final fugue, this is the music of a young genius determined to dazzle the Roman cognoscenti and push his choir to the limits of virtuosity. An oasis of calm amid so much
seething energy is the supplicatory duet ‘De torrente’, for two sopranos against chanted monotones from the male chorus. The singers’ ecstatically entwined lines and chains of bittersweet suspensions have made this a desert island shortlist piece for many Handel lovers.
Giovanni Paolo Panini (1691-1765) St Peter’s Square, Rome as Handel would have seen it
PURCELL: HEAR MY PRAYER,
O LORD, Z. 15
Hear my prayer, O Lord, and let my crying come unto thee.
Psalm 102: V.1
J. S. BACH: DER GEIST HILFT UNSER SCHWACHHEIT AUF,
BWV 226
Der Geist hilft unser Schwachheit auf, denn wir wissen nicht, was wir beten sollen, wie sich’s gebühret; sondern der Geist selbst vertritt uns aufs Beste mit unaussprechlichem Seufzen. Der aber die Herzen forschet, der weiß, was des Geistes Sinn sei; denn er vertritt die Heiligen nach dem, das Gott gefället.
Du heilige Brunst, süßer Trost, nun hilf uns, fröhlich und getrost in deinem Dienst beständig bleiben, die Trübsal uns nicht abtreiben. O Herr, durch dein Kraft uns bereit und stärk des Fleisches Blödigkeit, dass wir hie ritterlich ringen, durch Tod und Leben zu dir dringen. Halleluja, halleluja.
Romans 8:26-27, Martin Luther
THE SPIRIT HELPETH OUR INFIRMITIES
The Spirit helpeth our infirmities, for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.
O heavenly ardour, sweet comfort, help us now with joy and confidence to remain steadfast in thy service, and not to be deflected by affliction. O Lord, prepare us by Thy might and strengthen the feeble flesh that we may strive valiantly here to attain to Thee through death and life. Alleluia, Alleluia!
Translation
by Richard Stokes
Singet dem Herrn ein neues Lied, die Gemeine der Heiligen sollen ihn loben. Israel freue sich des, der ihn gemacht hat. Die Kinder Zion sei’n fröhlich über ihrem Könige, sie sollen loben seinen Namen im Reihen; mit Pauken und mit Harfen sollen sie ihm spielen.
Wie sich ein Vater erbarmet
Gott, nimm dich ferner unser an, über seine junge Kinderlein, so tut der Herr uns allen, so wir ihn kindlich fürchten rein. Er kennt das arm Gemächte, Gott weiß, wir sind nur Staub, denn ohne dich ist nichts getan mit allen unsern Sachen.
Gleichwie das Gras vom Rechen, ein Blum und fallend Laub! Der Wind nur drüber wehet, so ist es nicht mehr da, Drum sei du unser Schirm und Licht, und trügt uns unsre Hoffnung nicht, so wirst du’s ferner machen. Also der Mensch vergehet, sein End, das ist ihm nah.
Wohl dem, der sich nur steif und fest auf dich und deine Huld verlässt.
Lobet den Herrn in seinen Taten, lobet ihn in seiner großen Herrlichkeit!
Alles, was Odem hat, lobe den Herrn.
Halleluja!
Psalm 149:1-3, Psalm 150: 2,6, Johann Gramann
SING UNTO THE LORD A NEW SONG
Sing unto the Lord a new song, the congregation of saints shall praise him. Let Israel rejoice in him that made him. The children of Sion shall rejoice in their king, they shall praise his name with dancing, and they shall play to him with drums and harps.
As a father takes pity God, continue to take care of us, on his own young children, so does the Lord pity us all, if we fear him like pure children. He knows our poor estate, God knows that we are but dust, for without thee all human endeavour is nothing. Like grass that is reaped, the fading flower and falling leaf. The wind only has to blow over it, and it is there no more.
Be therefore our shield and light, and if our hope does not deceive us, thou shalt continue to be so. Man thus passes away, and his end is near.
Blessed is he who steadfastly relies on thee and thy grace.
Praise the Lord for his mighty deeds, praise him according to his excellent greatness. Let everything that hath breath praise the Lord. Alleluia!
Translation by Richard Stokes
HANDEL: DIXIT DOMINUS, HWV 232
Dixit Dominus Domino meo: Sede a dextris meis. Donec ponam inimicos tuos, scabellum pedum tuorum.
Virgam virtutis tuae emittet Dominus ex Sion: dominare in medio inimicorum tuorum.
Tecum principium in die virtutis tuae in splendoribus sanctorum: ex utero ante luciferum genui te.
Juravit Dominus, et non poenitebit eum: Tu es sacerdos in aeternum secundum ordinem Melchisedech.
Dominus a dextris tuis confregit in die irae suae reges. Judicabit in nationibus, implebit ruinas, conquasabit capita in terra multorum.
De torrente in via bibet: propterea exaltabit caput.
Gloria Patri, et Filio, et Spiritui Sancto.
Sicut erat in principio, et nunc, et semper, et in saecula saeculorum.
Amen.
Psalm 110
THE LORD SAID
The Lord said unto my Lord: Sit thou on my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool.
The Lord shall send the rod of thy power out of Sion: be thou ruler, even in the midst of thine enemies.
In the day of thy power shall people offer thee free-will offerings with an holy worship: the dew of thy birth is of the womb of the morning.
The Lord hath sworn, and will not repent: Thou art a priest forever after the order of Melchisedek.
The Lord upon thy right hand shall wound even kings in the day of his wrath. He shall judge the nations, fill the places with destruction, and shatter the skulls in the land of the many.
He shall drink from the brook in the way: therefore shall he lift up his head.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
As it was in the beginning, and is now, and ever shall be, world without end.
Amen.
Book of Common Prayer, Church of England (1662)
BARTS NORTH WING
Barts North Wing is a spectacular and little-known architectural and artistic treasure, located in the City of London, within England’s oldest working hospital. The North Wing was completed in 1734 to the designs of leading architect James Gibbs and was designed to impress and encourage support for St Bartholomew’s Hospital and its rebuilding. The building features the Great Hall, one of the most beautiful banqueting spaces in London, and the celebrated grand staircase, decorated with two vast paintings by the leading artist William Hogarth.
On 6 October 2025 the North Wing reopened after a major £9.5m restoration project, led by Barts Heritage and supported by the National Lottery Heritage Fund. The works included the renewal of the roof and extensive repairs to the stonework, windows and ironwork. Inside, the magnificent interiors have
been meticulously conserved and provided with state-of-the-art new lighting, heating and catering facilities. The building is now open to the public for two days a week, with new visitor facilities and information, and at other times available for private hire for a variety of events including dinners, weddings, conferences, concerts and much more. Capacity of 200 for a sit-down lunch or dinner and 400 for a standing reception.
With thanks to Tony Hales CBE for supporting tonight’s performance and bringing together Barts Heritage and the Monteverdi Choir & Orchestras.
MONTEVERDI CHOIR
They are truly one of the finest choirs of their time.” Bachtrack “
For over 60 years the Monteverdi Choir has been recognised as one of the greatest and most influential choirs in the world. Through a combination of consummate technique and historically-informed performance practice, the Choir constantly strives to bring fresh perspectives, immediacy and drama to its performances.
The recipient of many awards, the Monteverdi Choir was named ‘Best Choir’ at the 2024 Oper! Awards, with the jury noting that: “At festivals, on concert tours and in their numerous recordings, this is an ensemble whose quality will always leave the listener speechless.”
Fresh from celebrating its 60th anniversary in 2024, the Choir’s 2025 programme has a range of concerts and projects in support of MCO’s expansion of its repertoire and conductor collaborations. This includes the opening concert of the Edinburgh International Festival, performing John Tavener’s monumental The Veil of The Temple as the central and only professional choir involved. The Choir previously commissioned John Tavener’s The World is Burning to celebrate its 30th anniversary in 1993.
Other highlights in 2025 include Bach with Masaaki Suzuki, Mozart with Pablo Heras-Casado, semi-staged Rossini with Jakob Lehmann, and Handel’s Messiah with Christophe Rousset. On Good
Friday 2025, the MCO’s own recording label, Soli Deo Gloria, released its first new recording since before the global pandemic with an album of Bruckner and Gesualdo motets recorded live in concert in October 2024, conducted by Jonathan Sells. In September, MCO released an album of Charpentier conducted by Christophe Rousset that was toured across Europe in December of 2024.
The Choir’s anniversary season in 2024 opened with three concerts at Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw conducted by Dinis Sousa. These performances were followed by Handel’s Israel in Egypt conducted by Peter Whelan in London and across Europe; Beethoven’s Mass in C major and Symphony No. 9 in London and Paris; and Bach’s sacred motets in London and Leipzig conducted by Jonathan Sells, who then returned to conduct the Choir in performances of Bruckner and Gesualdo motets in Ely, Oxford and London.
Founded in 1964 by John Eliot Gardiner, the Monteverdi Choir has released over 150 recordings and won numerous prizes. In 2023, the Choir and English Baroque Soloists were honoured to perform at the Coronation of HM The King, with The Telegraph proclaiming “if the Monteverdi Choir isn’t singing when I get to the gates of Heaven, I want my money back.”
ENGLISH BAROQUE SOLOISTS
For over 40 years, the English Baroque Soloists has been one of the most innovative period-instrument ensembles, consistently challenging the preconceptions of audiences around the world. Equally at home in chamber, symphonic and operatic repertoire, its distinctively warm and incisive playing is instantly recognisable in music ranging from Monteverdi to Mozart. The orchestra has performed at many of the world’s most prestigious venues, including Milan’s Teatro alla Scala, the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam and the Sydney Opera House.
The EBS’s 2025 season sees them expand their repertoire and conductor collaborations, highlighting a drive for new creative challenges with a year that includes Mozart with Marc Minkowski, Bach with Masaaki Suzuki, and Handel with Christophe Rousset.
The EBS and the Monteverdi Choir appeared at the 2025 Edinburgh International Festival with ‘Sing to the Lord a New Song’, which featured a selection of works by Purcell, Bach and Handel (including Dixit Dominus), conducted by Jonathan Sells.
In December 2024, the ensemble performed Bach and Charpentier with the Monteverdi Choir on a European tour to La Scala Milan, Alte Oper Frankfurt, Elbphilharmonie Hamburg and St Martin-in-the-Fields, its London home. The tour was conducted by renowned French Baroque specialist Christophe
Intricate and detailed throughout … it was brilliant.” Die Presse
Rousset, making his MCO debut, and last September, MCO released an album of these performances recorded for Soli Deo Gloria, MCO’s own label. The performances were universally greeted with praise, with The Guardian describing it as “joyous and immaculate,” while Operawire noted “a fresh sense of artistic renewal”.
Also in 2024, the EBS joined the Monteverdi Choir for performances of Handel’s oratorio Israel in Egypt, conducted by Peter Whelan. This programme toured to the Palau de la Música Barcelona, Philharmonie Luxembourg, Chapelle Royale Château de Versailles, Elbphilharmonie Hamburg and Haus für Mozart, Salzburg. In 2023, the EBS and the Monteverdi Choir were honoured to perform at the Coronation of HM The King.
The ensemble famously took part in the iconic Bach Cantata Pilgrimage in 2000 alongside the Monteverdi Choir, performing all of Bach’s sacred cantatas throughout Europe, and recorded for Soli Deo Gloria. They also made the earliest recording of Mozart’s complete piano concertos on period instruments, as well as his greatest operas for Deutsche Grammophon.
Founded in 1978 by John Eliot Gardiner, the EBS has also participated in major opera productions alongside the Monteverdi Choir in works by Handel, Purcell and Monteverdi.
JONATHAN SELLS
conductor
Jonathan Sells is an internationally renowned artistic director, conductor, and singer. A member of the Monteverdi Choir from 2009-2018, Sells made his conducting debut with the Choir and English Baroque Soloists in June 2024. The performances – Bach Motets at St Martin-in-theFields, London and Bachfest Leipzig –were met with a rapturous reception from audiences and critics.
In October 2024 he conducted a programme of Bruckner and Gesualdo with the choir in Ely, Oxford and the Old Royal Naval College, Greenwich, which was recorded live in concert for the MCO’s record label, Soli Deo Gloria, and was released earlier this year.
In 2008 he founded the baroque collective Solomon’s Knot, “one of the UK’s most innovative and imaginative ensembles” and now Resident Baroque Ensemble at Wigmore Hall. As artistic director, he has spearheaded bold projects and fruitful collaborations at top festivals in Europe and North America.
Under his leadership, Solomon’s Knot “set new standards” with productions of JS Bach’s St John and St Matthew Passions, semi-staged by John La Bouchardière at Bachfest Leipzig, Thüringen Bachwochen, Snape Maltings, and Wigmore Hall. On the recommendation of Sir John Eliot Gardiner, he made his Bachfest Leipzig
debut as musical director in 2016 with Bach’s Magnificat, later recorded and released on Sony Classical. Solomon’s Knot’s recording of JS & JC Bach Motets was released by Prospero Classical in 2023, and “demonstrates the innermost essence of this music like never before” (Klassisk Musikk).
Leading from within the ensemble, Sells has directed memorised performances including Bach’s Mass in B minor, St Michael’s Day cantatas (BBC Proms), Hunt Cantata and Mass in F major (Bachwoche Ansbach), and Christmas Oratorio (Wigmore Hall), and Handel’s Messiah and Esther (Händel-Festspiele Halle, Regensburg Tage Alter Musik) as well as Dixit Dominus (Bachfest Schaffhausen, Brighton Festival, De Singel Antwerp). In 2025 he will head Solomon’s Knot in the world premiere of Chad Kelly’s new reconstruction of Bach’s Köthener Trauermusik at Wigmore Hall, Tage alter Musik Regensburg, and Bachfest Leipzig.
Sells has a burning curiosity for neglected geniuses of the 17th and 18th centuries such as Johann Kuhnau, George Jeffreys, and Barbara Strozzi, as well as later repertoire: he has conducted Beethoven, Dvorak, Prokofiev, Nielsen, and Varèse, and has worked with choirs from the UK to the Middle East.
IN TONIGHT’S PERFORMANCE:
MONTEVERDI CHOIR
Soprano
Zoë Brookshaw*
Chloë Morgan*
Rachel Allen
Lucy Knight
Charlotte La Thrope
Emily Owen
Rebecca Ramsey
Cressida Sharp
Alto
Reginald Mobley*
Francesca Biliotti
Sarah Denbee
Hamish McLaren
Tenor
Hugo Hymas*
Thomas Herford
Tom Kelly
Will Wright
Bass
Florian Störtz*
Tristan Hambleton
Jack Lawrence-Jones
Christopher Webb
* soloists
ENGLISH BAROQUE SOLOISTS
Violin I
Sophia Prodanova
George Clifford
Oliver Webber
Sarah Bealby-Wright
Violin II
Sophie Simpson
Jayne Spencer
Mark Seow
Lucy Waterhouse
Viola
Lisa Cochrane
Thomas Kettle
Cello
Felix Knecht
Bass
Rosie Moon
Bassoon
Inga Maria Klaucke
Organ & Harpsichord
James Johnstone
Theorbo
Sergio Bucheli
© Gerard Collett
ZOË BROOKSHAW
soprano
British soprano Zoë Brookshaw read Theology at Cambridge University where she was a choral Scholar at Trinity College. She was a member of the Monteverdi Choir’s Apprentices Programme and a Rising Star of the Enlightenment with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment. Her opera engagements include Euridice and La Musica (L’Orfeo) with I Fagiolini, Aerial Spirit (The Indian Queen) in Antwerp, Caen, Lille and Luxembourg with Le Concert d’Astrée, Rameau (Pygmalion) with Dunedin Consort, and roles in The Fairy Queen with Gabrieli Consort.
On the concert platform Zoë has appeared with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, Gabrieli Consort, Arcangelo, Britten Sinfonia, Gli Angeli Genève, Collegium Vocale Gent, the English Chamber Orchestra,London Handel Players and is a member of Solomon’s Knot. Zoë has recorded Bach, Blow, Lennox & Michael Berkeley, and Charpentier on the Delphian, Hyperion, Resonus, Signum Classics, Soli dei Gloria and Sony labels.
CHLOË MORGAN
soprano
Chloë Morgan began her career as an Apprentice with the Monteverdi Choir in 2009. She is the recipient of awards including the Emerging Artist award at the inaugural Opera: By Voice Alone competition, the 2017 MOCSA Young Welsh Singer of the Year, and the 2019 Peter Hulsen Orchestral Song Award (1st Place and Audience prize).
Recent operatic roles include Marzelline (Fidelio) for Glyndebourne Tour, Belinda (Dido and Aeneas) at the New Generation Festival, and Nannetta (Falstaff) at Grange Park Opera alongside Sir Bryn Terfel as the title role. She has also won critical acclaim for several appearances at the Staatstheater Nürnberg, including Regina (Mathis der Maler), Mélisande (Pelléas et Mélisande), and Pamina (Die Zauberflöte), a role she also sang at the Gärtnerplatztheater in Munich.
Solo highlights include Mendelssohn’s Lobgesang at the Sebalduskirche Nürnberg, Bach’s St John Passion at the Lorenzkirche Nürnberg and St Matthew Passion with Die Nieuwe Philharmonie in Utrecht, Saint-Saëns’ Oratorio de Noël with the Rheinische Philharmonie in Koblenz, Brahms Requiem and Mozart Requiem at the National Concert Hall in Dublin, and a tour to Vienna and Krakow with the Morriston Orpheus Choir.
REGINALD MOBLEY
countertenor
GRAMMY-nominated American countertenor Reginald Mobley is globally renowned for his interpretation of baroque, classical and modern repertoire, leading a prolific career on both sides of the Atlantic.
An advocate for diversity in music and its programming, Reginald became the first-ever Programming Consultant for the Handel & Haydn Society following several years of leading them in their community-engaging Every Voice concerts. Reginald is leading a research project in the UK (funded by the AHRC) to uncover music by composers from diverse backgrounds.
Highlights of recent seasons include recitals at De Bijloke in Gent, Wigmore Hall, MA Festival (Brugge), and the Bayreuth Baroque Opera Festival, as well as regular appearances with major orchestras and specialized ensembles in North America and Europe. Reginald has also been invited to tour Australia with Bach Akademie Australia, and Japan with Bach Collegium Japan and Masaaki Suzuki. His first solo CD with Alpha Classics was released in June 2023, the CD won both an Opus Klassik and an Edison Klassiek award.
HUGO HYMAS
tenor
British tenor Hugo Hymas is widely recognised for his expressive interpretations of classical, baroque, and renaissance repertoire. He performs regularly with leading period ensembles including Arcangelo, Capella Mediterranea, Le Concert d’Astrée, Collegium Vocale Gent, and the OAE. He also appears with the Bergen Philharmonic, Sinfonieorchester Basel, Tonkünstler-Orchester Niederösterreich, English Chamber Orchestra, and Nord Nederlands Orkest.
Operatic highlights include Jove (Semele) at Glyndebourne Festival Opera, Eurimaco (Il ritorno d’Ulisse in patria) at Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, Lucius in the world premiere of Battistelli’s Julius Caesar at Teatro dell’Opera di Roma, Septimius (Theodora), Clotarco (Haydn’s Armida), and Alessandro (Handel’s Poro) in performances across Europe. He is a frequent interpreter of Acis (Acis and Galatea) and will return to Glyndebourne in 2026 for L’Orfeo
A former Britten-Pears Young Artist and Rising Star of the Enlightenment, Hugo grew up in Cambridge, sang as a chorister at Great St Mary’s Church, and later joined the Choir of Clare College, Cambridge.
© Richard Dumas
© Ben McKee
FLORIAN STÖRTZ
bass baritone
German bass-baritone Florian Störtz is rapidly establishing himself on the international stage, following major successes at the 2023 International Handel Singing Competition, the Helmut Deutsch Song Competition, and the Lili et Nadia Boulanger competition in Paris. He also won the Young Artists Platform at the 2024 International Song Festival Zeist and is a Rising Star of the Enlightenment.
Recent concert highlights include performances with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra and Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment under Václav Luks and Masaaki Suzuki; Berlioz’s L’Enfance du Christ with the NFM Wrocław Philharmonic under Paul McCreesh; and Bach’s B Minor Mass with The English Concert under Kristian Bezuidenhout. He toured Europe with the OAE in Matthäus-Passion under Jonathan Cohen.
Florian has given recitals at Wigmore Hall, Carnegie Hall, Salle Cortot in Paris, and festivals across Europe. Future engagements include his operatic debut in L’Orfeo at Glyndebourne, and performances with Royal Northern Sinfonia, the OAE, and Collegium Vocale Gent.
Florian trained at the Royal Academy of Music and the Britten Pears Young Artist Programme. Originally from Trier, Germany, he is now based in London and maintains a strong interest in science alongside his musical career.
© Benjamin Ealovega
MONTEVERDI APPRENTICES PROGRAMME
The Monteverdi Apprentices Programme is a training scheme for young musicians that seeks to bridge the gap between higher education and a professional, freelance music career. By crafting a supportive learning environment for talented young artists, providing rewarding performance opportunities alongside our ensembles, and exposing them to coaching from experts in a range of fields, the Monteverdi Choir and Orchestras aim to nurture the next generation of musical talent.
The Apprentices take part in workshops and masterclasses with a focus on historically-informed performance practices. Previously, these have been led by industry-leading singers and vocal coaches including Jean-Paul Fouchécourt, Sophie Daneman, Matteo Dalle Fratte and Richard Stokes. Each Apprentice is also matched to an experienced member of the Monteverdi Choir who acts as a mentor, offering them tailored artistic and practical support, providing invaluable holistic advice, guiding them through the practicalities of preparing for projects, and helping them to adjust and integrate into the wider ensemble whilst still encouraging their personal development.
Monteverdi Apprentices are also given the opportunity to perform with our world-class ensembles, joining the Monteverdi Choir and Orchestras for concerts both in the UK and overseas. Our aim is to round out their musical education, to help prepare them for
future challenges, and to allow them to gain unrivalled experience of the working practices of an internationally renowned ensemble in a safe and supportive environment. By the end of each programme, we expect to have equipped these young musicians with the skills to be able to work as professionals with the Monteverdi Choir and Orchestras and other similar organisations worldwide. Now in its 18th year, the programme has over 90 alumni, and many prior Apprentices still perform regularly with the Monteverdi ensembles.
We are delighted that internationally acclaimed soloists Dame Sarah Connolly and Mark Padmore have become Ambassadors for the Monteverdi Apprentices Programme. Both Sarah and Mark have a long association with the Monteverdi Choir, and both share our deep commitment to nurturing the next generation of vocal talent. Each brings a wealth of experience, a passion for ensemble singing and a profound
understanding of vocal artistry, stylistic versatility and the demands of a modern singing career. As inspirational role models and experienced mentors, they will offer invaluable guidance to the Apprentices, drawing on their wideranging professional insight.
MONTEVERDI APPRENTICES
2025/26
The 2025/26 programme is in full swing, with Apprentices joining in recent MCO performances of Mozart’s Requiem with Pablo Heras-Casado at St Martin-in-the-Fields, and Rossini with Jakob Lehmann at Cadogan Hall. Lehmann also led the Apprentices in a masterclass on Italian song, joined by language coach Pepi Ferrari. They also took part in another workshop led by
Richard Stokes, Professor of Lieder at the Royal Academy of Music.
The Apprentices started work together, under the direction of Choir Director Jonathan Sells, during a 3-day residency at Grittleton House in Wiltshire at the beginning of September. They were joined by some of the programme’s mentors, as well as Mark Padmore, who led a workshop on Bach. The programme is due to feature more coaching, workshops and masterclasses over the coming months, and will culminate in a final recital featuring repertoire they have worked on over the course of the year. More information about each of the nine singers taking part in the current programme can be found in the ‘Education’ section of our website (monteverdi.co.uk).
Apprentices with Jakob Lehmann and Pepi Ferrari
SUPPORT THE MONTEVERDI ENSEMBLES
Monteverdi Choir & Orchestras’ (MCO) mission is to bring fresh perspectives, immediacy and drama to historically inspired musical performances around the world. MCO is made up of three internationally-renowned ensembles that lead the field of period performance: the Monteverdi Choir, English Baroque Soloists and Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romantique. Performing regularly in London concert venues, as well as touring worldwide, MCO is in its 61st year of delivering outstanding performances and recordings to global critical acclaim.
As a registered charity with no public subsidy, the Monteverdi Choir and Orchestras rely on the generosity of our supporters to continue planning our ambitious, historically-informed artistic programme. This support allows us to deliver projects without compromising on artistic quality or integrity, to share our concerts with music lovers around the world through top-quality film and audio content, and helps us to nurture and develop the next generation of musical talent.
© Paul Marc Mitchell
WAYS YOU CAN SUPPORT US
JOIN OUR MEMBERSHIP SCHEME
Our membership scheme starts from £250 per year. Members enjoy a range of benefits including a personalised priority booking service for all our concerts, monthly newsletters, and invitations to post-concert receptions. At higher levels, additional benefits include invitations to exclusive open rehearsals and backstage access after our performances.
BECOME A BENEFACTOR
By supporting our charity at this highest level, you will contribute substantially towards our landmark projects, allow us to perform regularly in our London home at St Martin-inthe-Fields, and share our music globally via our filmed concerts.
BECOME A CORPORATE SPONSOR
We can offer creative and collaborative sponsorship packages that enable you to align your business with our work. There are opportunities to sponsor individual performances, or an entire season of concerts at our London home, St Martin-in-the-Fields.
LEAVE A LEGACY
By choosing to leave a Legacy Gift to the Monteverdi Choir & Orchestras, you will play a crucial role in ensuring that the performers and listeners of the future will continue to be enthralled by the power of our music-making.
JOIN OUR AMERICAN FRIENDS
Our American Friends play a valuable part in supporting and championing the work of the Monteverdi ensembles both in the US and beyond. The American Friends of the Monteverdi Choir & Orchestras, Inc is a registered 501(c)(3) organisation and donations to it are tax-deductible for US taxpayers to the extent allowed by law. EIN:31-1651106.
CONTACT US
If you wish to find out more about supporting MCO please get in touch. On our website, you will find the facility to make a donation (which we warmly welcome at any level), purchase one of our memberships, or treat a friend via a Gift Membership. If you would like to discuss becoming a Benefactor, or how your organisation could partner with us, please contact us to arrange a conversation with our General Director.
development@monteverdi.org.uk www.monteverdi.co.uk/support-us Opposite: The Monteverdi Choir and Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romantique conducted by Jakob Lehmann
MONTEVERDI SUPPORTERS
The Monteverdi Choir & Orchestras gratefully acknowledges the generous support of the following individuals, organisations and Trusts & Foundations:
PATRON
HM The King
PRESIDENT
Carol Grigor CBE
PRINCIPAL FUNDER
Dunard Fund
BENEFACTORS
Michael Beverley
David & Sandra Brierwood
Christian & Myrto Rochat
Sir David & Lady Walker
MEMBERSHIP SCHEME
PLATINUM
David Best
Lord & Lady Burns
Morny Davison
Lord & Lady Deben
Sir Vernon Ellis
Andrey Kidel
William Lock
Sebastian & Flora Lyon
Francis Norton
Yoshi Onodera
Helen & John Skinner
Clare Woodman CBE
GOLD
Lady Virginia Fraser
Sir Stephen Gomersall
Gordon Gullan
Stephen & Victoria Swift
SILVER
Julia & Martin Albrecht
Geoffrey Barnett
Donald & Corrine Brydon
Rosemary Chadder
Peter & Stephanie Chapman
Sarah & Mike Cuthbert
Tony Hales CBE
Yi-Peng Li
Lady Nixon
Mollie Norwich
Stefan Paetke
THANK YOU TO OUR CURRENT SUPPORTERS
Nicholas & Christylle Phillips
Professor Richard Portes CBE FBA
Anthony C. Shoults
Professor John Smyth
BRONZE
Tania Bader
Donald D. Campbell
Vanessa Claypole
Dr Carol Cobb
Steve Edge
Jonathan Edwards
Lady Egremont
Nigel Gibson
Jenny Hill
Mark & Sophie Lewisohn
Robert Moreland
Mary Pinnell
Daan Posthuma
Meghan Purvis
Anne Reyersbach
Thomas Richter
Dr Paul A. Sackin
Steven & Olivia Schaefer
Christopher J. H. Thornhill
Jenny & John Wiggins
With grateful thanks to all those who wish to remain anonymous and other individuals who continue to support our work with their generous donations.
CORPORATE PARTNERS
Morgan Stanley
TRUSTS & FOUNDATIONS
Dunard Fund
King Charles III Charitable Fund
Garfield Weston Foundation
The David and Claudia Harding Foundation
Mrs F B Laurence’s Charitable Trust
The Rainbow Dickinson Trust
The Thistle Trust
IN MEMORIAM
Roger Chadder
Peter J. Chapman
Ian Hay Davison CBE
Sir Henry Keswick
Judith McCartin Scheide
Nicholas Snowman OBE
Geoffrey Taunton
LEGACIES
The Estate of Donald Gorman
The Estate of Howard Hodgkin
The Estate of Kevin Lavery
AMERICAN FRIENDS
The Negaunee Foundation
William Dudley
Neil Graham
David Kay
Seth Levi
Jai Shekhawat
Rory Walck
MCO TEAM
Dr Rosa Solinas
General Director
Martin Wheeler Finance & Administration Manager
James Halliday
Artistic Advisor & Librarian
Matthew Knight
Artistic Planning Manager
Janet Marsden Head of Concerts & Tours
David Kay Philanthropy Manager
Charlotte Walker Development Assistant
Katie Care Administrator
Sophie Southall Marketing & Communications Assistant
Orlando Jones Administrator
Philip Turbett Orchestra Fixer
Matthew Muller
Stage Manager
Premier Comms
PR & media relations
Big Man Consultancy
Instrument Transport
MCO BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Christian Rochat (Chairman)
Nicholas Eldred
Sir Stephen Gomersall
Diana Houghton
Barra Little
Francis Norton
Caz Weller Knight
MONTEVERDI CHOIR & ORCHESTRAS
Level 12, 20 Bank Street, Canary Wharf, London E14 4AD, UK info@monteverdi.org.uk
Registered in England & Wales Company No. 01277513 Charity No. 272279
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Design: Linda Lundin, Park Studio
HANDEL MESSIAH BACH ST JOHN PASSION
Monteverdi Choir
English Baroque Soloists
Christophe Rousset – conductor
10–16 Dec 2025
Paris, Rome, Milan, London
Monteverdi Choir
English Baroque Soloists
Peter Whelan – conductor
6 March – 3 April 2026
Barcelona, London, Budapest